My expertise: personal finance, career transition, and retirement. My latest book is Love Your Job: The New Rules of Career Happiness. Other recent books include: What's Next? Finding Your Passion and Your Dream Job in Your Forties, Fifties and Beyond and Great Jobs for Everyone 50 +. I am a columnist for The New York Times. I am AARP's JOB EXPERT. I write a weekly column for boomer women on the new PBS web site, NextAvenue.org. My journalistic journey has taken me from Forbes to Money to Kiplinger's Personal Finance to U.S. News and World Report, where I developed the "Second Acts" column back in 2006, and then on to USA Today where I wrote the “Your Money” column. I run my own media company with the following platforms: I write non-fiction career and personal finance books and online columns like this one. I give speeches on changing careers, finding work after 50, working in retirement, ways to learn to love your job and women and money. I consult on a variety of career topics. I grew up in Fox Chapel, outside of Pittsburgh, Pa. I'm a graduate of Duke University. To learn more about me, go to http://www.kerryhannon.com/. If you have story ideas or tips, e-mail me at kerry@kerryhannon.com. Follow me on Twitter: @KerryHannon

Six Reasons You Should Volunteer Your Way to A Job

This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing three retirees, who are working part-time jobs they love– for pay.

All three were hired after spending time as a volunteer. One is a ranger with the National Park Service, another does social work at a hospital, and one pours wine in a tasting room at a winery in Walla Walla, WA.

I know you’re probably looking for full-time work, but it reminded me once again of the advice I like to give anyone who is out of work and feeling hopeless, frustrated, or simply pissed off at answering the question­: How’s the job hunt going?

I recently learned that baby boomers today have the highest volunteer rate of any age group. They also volunteer at higher rates than past generations did when they were the same age, according to a report by the Corporation for National and Community Service.

Here’s why it’s in your best interest to volunteer if you’re looking for work right now.

A test run. If you choose a volunteer gig with an eye to your future, you can do a job before you actually “do” a job. This way you can get a taste of whether it really is something you want to do, or best suits you. You might think you’d make a great fundraiser, but when you really are out there asking for money, it stinks.

Slip in the back, Jack. It’s a discreet way into a company, particularly a nonprofit. You slide in through the back door, so to speak. Employers can be won over when they see you in action, and it can even ally their fears of hiring an older worker. Age discrimination is real as I wrote in this post. It also makes it easier and less risky when he or she can hire someone they now know.

Shift to nonprofit work. “You can prove yourself in the nonprofit world and get the credentials that you’ve done it,” ReServe Inc.’s president, Mary Bleiberg advises. “If you’ve been a controller in a small manufacturing company, for example, and have been let go, you might take on a similar position in the nonprofit sector pro bono, or at a dramatically reduced rate, working two or three days a week.” In my opinion, ReServe is a terrific resource that matches professionals 55+ with the nonprofits that need them-mostly in New York, Baltimore and Miami at this stage.

Train for new line of work. If you’re interested in moving into work as a nutritionist, or even opening a restaurant, for example, at DC Central Kitchen (dccentralkitchen.org), in Washington, D.C., you might volunteer at the organization’s Nutrition Lab. You’ll help prepare healthy meals cooked from scratch.

Build your resume. Still having trouble seeing how donating your time is a good use of your day? Believe me, if you’ve been in charge of the silent auction at a nonprofit’s fundraising event, you can surely add event planning, or event marketing to your resume and online professional profile.This kind of volunteering project highlights your sales, marketing, and even management skills. (Continue to next page, please.)

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The Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is a national program that provides volunteer matches for those 55 and better with non-profit organizations of their choice. Thoughtful matches are made with respect to the volunteer’s interests, experience, and abilities, as well as the organization’s current needs. RSVPs are sponsored locally by Area Agencys on Aging, Catholic Charities, YMCAs, and a variety of other non-profits, are free of charge, and offer some nice benefits to the volunteer (free insurance while volunteering and recognition, to name a few). It’s “one-stop shopping” to find a volunteer opportunity! Everyone has something to give! Rebecca Nunley, Director of RSVP: Monroe and Owen Counties (Indiana)